'Main Prem Ki Deewani Hoon': Barjatya's
latest, has a casting coup of sorts

          Acclaimed Bollywood director Sooraj Barjatya's much-awaited romantic 'Main Prem Ki Deewani Hoon' (I am Crazy about Love) opened to packed cinema houses across the country on Friday. Known as the man with the midas touch, Barjatya shot to fame with his very first feel-good musical movie, 'Maine Pyar Kiya' (I Have Fallen in Love) in 1989. Film-crazy fans in New Delhi made a beeline to the nearest cinema hall to catch the reel romance between actors Abhishek Bachchan, Hrithik Roshan and Kareena Kapoor. "I liked all the actors, I think they have done a good job. All of them have acted well. All the actors, I really enjoyed the film," said Monica Chawla, a film buff. There were others like Himanshu Malik, who enjoyed the actors more than the movie. "Kareena is looking very good and also Abhishek and Hrithik are fantastic," he said.

          The movie revolves around a girl, played by Kapoor, whose parents encourage her to fall in love with a certain boy. They realise later that they have got the wrong person due to a misunderstanding after which they nudge her towards the person who was their original choice. Featuring Bollywood's hottest young stars, Roshan, Kapoor and Bachchan, "Main Prem..." is a casting coup of sorts and the result of four years of passion, dedication and painstaking effort. "We got Hrithik to do this film, and then we got Abhiskeh to do this film, and Kareena is doing the film and suddenly people are saying Oh!...you've got the casting of the year. You've got both together... and it's dawned upon me whoever I got? So it got to me later on that I got two stars together and therein a lot of makers were trying to get the two heroes together and I was the fortunate one. They are playing characters. They're playing characters and story is the basis of 'Main Prem ... ". It's about the 'deewanapan' (obsession) from a girl's point of view," said Sooraj Barjatya, director of the movie.

           Applauding his character 'Prem,' Abhishek Bachchan said it is straight and real, which would capture the hearts of the audience. "It's good to see a very good character after a very long time. Today is an age where most of our characters are being very realistic, have many different shades. Nobody is only good and nobody's only bad. There are people who have complexities. The character of Prem that Sooraj has given me, is very straight but basically a very good person," said Bachchan. Son of legendary star Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek who started his career around the same time as the other two star-children Roshan and Kapoor, is desperately looking for a hit to give a boost to his career. Kapoor, around whom the whole story revolves, is a vivacious character who is modern in her outlook, yet traditional in her values.

          "It's a very special role because it's the first time that I have a challenging role and I have a chance to perform and to show to my fans and audiences a typical Indian girl who has typical Indian values and that's more or less like me. Determination towards her parents I think is what I love the most in her character and the passion and intensity towards her lover", she said. Kapoor who has worked with the industry's best directors, producers and banners, hasn't delivered a single hit ever since she stepped in the tinsel town.

          Made with a mega budget of Rs 25 crore, this passionate love story has been wholly shot in Australia and New Zealand. Though Barjatya's last film in 1999, 'Hum Saath-Saath Hain' (We are All Together) was successful, it failed to recreate the magic of candyfloss drama 'Hum Apke Hain Kaun' (How are we Related). Released in 1994, 'Hum Apke Hain Koun' went on to break the record of one of the biggest hits of 70s, 'Sholay'.